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Prologue
__NOEDITSECTION__ The prologue, titled Stocke, is the opening chapter to the storyline of . It covers Stocke being given an important mission along with the White Chronicle, and the major choice that splits the timeline in two, marking the beginning of the Alternate and Standard Histories. Introduction After watching the world being destroyed over and over again, two young twins use their powers to go back in time and try to stop it once more. The severe desertification eats away the mana of the continent, causing a great war between two nations over what fertile land is left, who are ignorant of their ultimate fate. Daydream In Alistel, a Special Intelligence agent called Stocke is assigned a mission by his superior, Heiss, to recover an agent with information about Granorg's armament, who has been stranded in Lazvil Hills after the appearance of the enemy nation's forces. Given the delicate circumstances, he's assigned two subordinates to assist him on this mission. Heiss also gives him an old book called the White Chronicle, which only has blank pages, but his boss insists it might be useful on his mission. On his way out of Heiss' office, Stocke meets his subordinates, Raynie and Marco. After asking them about their abilities and briefing them on the mission, Stocke has a vision of them laying dead on the field. Once he comes back to his senses, the three of them start preparing for the mission. When they leave the city, an old friend of Stocke, Rosch, calls out to him, warning him he has a bad feeling about this mission. Knowing that Stocke will do it anyway, Rosch asks him to be careful. As it starts to rain, Granorg forces are already advancing through Lazvil Hills, being led by High Colonel Dias and Palomides the Executioner. When the Alistellian trio arrive undetected at the rendezvous point there's no sign of the informant, but Raynie doesn't want to wait for him as she is afraid Granorg would invade their new home. Marco explains that they once belonged to a mercenary troop, but one day they were all annihilated except for the two of them, and Heiss took them in after that. Children of Historia Suddenly, they see their contact running towards them while he's being pursued by Granorg soldiers. After taking them down, the group resolves to escort him back to Alistel as soon as possible, but they realize it won't be easy being surrounded by enemy forces. Stocke orders his partners to go ahead while he watches the rear, but they are quickly attacked by arrows flying from the south, killing the spy. As soon as he arrives, Stocke runs south to look for the sniper, but they're already gone. Seeing as the eastern path is blocked, the only way out is breaking through the enemy lines to the north. After taking down more of the enemy's forces, the group eventually get to the bridge where they meet Dias, who was waiting for them to arrive. Palomides is left alone to take care of them, who starts glowing in a shade of black. Knowing they don't stand a chance against him, Raynie and Marco decide to stall him so Stocke can go back to warn Alistel of the attack. After a futile attempt, they are both easily killed by Palomides, who blocks Stocke's way through the bridge. Without much else to do, Stocke puts his sword away and jumps into the river. After regaining consciousness, Stocke finds himself in a strange place where he meets two children who say they've been waiting for him, and they recognize him as the rightful holder of the White Chronicle. They introduce themselves as Teo & Lippti, and they explain this place is called Historia, "a world in time's gulf, created by the power of Flux". They tell Stocke that his decision to go north was the origin of his friends' deaths, and that thanks to the White Chronicle he now has the power to go back in time and rewrite history as it should be. The twins then open up a door and Stocke goes back to save their friends' lives. He arrives back in Lazvil Hills just before the archer's attack, so he pushes the spy away from the arrows, preventing his death. Knowing what lies ahead, he urges the team to go through the south path, but they are stopped by the blockade to the east. Teo & Lippti suddenly appear before him, granting him a small portion of their power so he can move the blocks away without much problem. Behind the barricade they encounter a group of Granorg soldiers, but the team quickly take them down and head straight towards Alistel. However, when they are about to leave Lazvil Hills, Stocke realizes he's still badly injured from his earlier fight with Palomides and passes out, collapsing to the ground. He wakes up in Historia again, where he is greeted by the twins. They explain to Stocke that they are the guides of the Chronicle's wielder, and that he cannot move as freely around time as he thinks, but only to pivotal moments in history in which he's directly related to, as they will be born out of his own experiences. They also discuss the injuries he received when fighting Palomides, stating that from his perspective they still happened. Having understood all this, the children ask Stocke to not talk to anyone about the White Chronicle, even Heiss. Somewhat reluctantly, he agrees, and heads back to his world. Awakening In Granorg, Queen Protea reigns from her throne and never leaves the castle. Her life of luxury and the current state of the war have left the country in peril, with many of its citizens leaving for other nations, including Alistel. Princess Eruca is aware of this and tries her best to provide for her people, but it proves to be difficult without the help of the Queen and Count Selvan, who are more concerned about the war and their own well-being. A few days later, in Alistel Castle's infirmary, Stocke finally wakes up just as Heiss arrives to check on him. He informs Stocke that their army successfully pushed Granorg's forces back, and that they were able to take back the Sand Fortress, all thanks to the intel he was able to secure. He tells Stocke he has another mission for him, Raynie and Marco, and asks if the White Chronicle was of any use, to which Stocke simply replies that it was useful as a lucky charm. Heiss then leaves, reminding him to come to his office whenever he's ready for the mission. When Stocke leaves the infirmary he is stopped by Sonja, an old friend of him and Rosch, who works in Alistel's medical division. She tells him she's impressed that he made it out alive after all he'd been through, and informs him that Rosch is with Lt. General Raul, who's appointing him as the commanding officer of a group formed by fresh cadets. Suddenly, a soldier enters the hallway, saying nothing and staring at them. He draws his sword and starts glowing black, just like Palomides did before. Rosch arrives just in time to intercept his attack and starts questioning him, but before he can say anything he turns into sand. The three of them come back inside the infirmary and discuss about what just happened. Given his Alistellian uniform they discard it was Granorg's doing, but his behavior and the way he died seemed strange. Sonja theorizes it may have been the Sand Plague what caused his death, although the details surrounding this affliction escape everyone's minds. Sonja then says she was told by her boss, Fennel, to not say a word about what happened, and goes back to work. The Beginning The two friends stay in the infirmary to discuss about Rosch's newly formed corps. He asks Stocke to join him, explaining he needs someone he can trust by his side, and that they would work together just like it was before Stocke joined Specint. Stocke then has a vision of himself standing next to Rosch's corpse, and starts wondering if he was the one who killed him. After Stocke comes to his senses, Rosch sees that he is not doing very well, which he attributes to the difficult decision he brought upon his friend, so he tells him to think about it and that he would be waiting for his answer later. As Stocke leaves the infirmary, he senses the White Chronicle calling out to him, and Teo & Lippti summon him once more to Historia. Knowing that the decision he has to make would split the timeline in two, they explain this is a point in time that he can always come back to and explore the different outcomes for his actions. They also tell him that his true mission is to search for a path in time that would eventually lead to the true history, preventing the world destruction. He understands his fate and the graveness of the situation. Having thought about it carefully, he goes to see Rosch and inform him of his decision. *Join Rosch Brigade (Alternate History) *Stay under Heiss (Standard History) Alternate History Joining Rosch Brigade Stocke decides to join the Rosch Brigade. Rosch is pleased, as he wasn't confident he would be able to train all the rookies by himself. He tells Stocke he's going to inform Lt. General Raul of his decision, who should be able to do all the paperwork for his transferal, as well as Raynie's and Marco's. Meanwhile, in Alistel Castle's Noah Square, General Hugo makes an appearance to deliver Prophet Noah's proclamations. The people are gathered around him, and he quotes their leader's words: "Now is the hour when the melted snow shall water the sandy soil". Nobody understands what this means, and he explains that Alistel's people is the melted snow that would purify the desert, Granorg, by getting rid of the source of evil that taints the land, the Queen. Believing his words, the citizens are eager to enlist in Alistel's army. From his office, Raul listens to Hugo's speech and questions his position as Noah's mouthpiece. Rosch arrives to inform him of Stocke's decision to join his Brigade, and Raul already has all the documents necessary. Rosch wonders if Heiss is going to be okay with taking Stocke out of his organization, but Raul reminds him that Specint is not an official branch of the government, and that Stocke is still technically part of the military. Still, knowing Heiss, they are prepared for him to come back at them at some point. Changing the subject, Raul informs Rosch that they already have a mission for his Brigade. Rosch is unsure about the rookies' abilities, but having Stocke at his side gives him more confidence. Raul mentions Hugo's speech, and that they should be expecting a lot of new recruits. Rosch affirms he'll do his best to bring them all back alive. Outside Raul's office, Stocke, Raynie and Marco are waiting for Rosch, and they wonder how are things going to be working with him. Rosch arrives shortly after, and Raynie recognizes him from the day they embarked on their first mission with Stocke. A new recruit who was waiting for Rosch with them questions Raynie's attitude towards their new Captain, but Rosch states that he's not used to formalities anyway. Rosch introduces the cadet Kiel as the leader of the new recruits, and explains that he always wanted to join the army after seeing him and Stocke training. Rosch starts explaining their newly appointed mission. Their destination is the Alma Mine, west of Lazvil Hills, which has been invaded by Granorg forces after losing the Sand Fortress. They blew up the seal on their side of the old mine, and the new Brigade's mission is to drive them back. Rosch asks Stocke to be with him on the vanguard in order to keep casualties to a minimum, and explains that Kiel's squad would be behind them to provide assistance, but also to give him a chance to see them in action. Shortly after, they start making preparations and set out to Alma Mine. The Closed Mine The group goes through Lazvil Hills, and shortly arrive at the mine. They meet an informant at the entrance, who tells them that the enemy is Count Selvan's troop, and that Alistel's side of the mine has been blocked by a rockslide. They were waiting for an explosives merchant, but they lost contact with him before he could reach them. The informant leaves, and Stocke and Rosch head deeper into the mine to confirm its state. Rosch asks the soldiers if they sent a scout to look for the merchant, but they explain they were short on personnel, so Kiel suggests they wait for the enemy and ambush them, to which Stocke agrees. This tactic proves to be successful, but as they battle the enemy forces, the Sand Fortress is lost and Granorg's army advances towards Alistel, which succumbs to the enemy's power. Stocke returns to Historia and goes back in time to make the right decision. Before he could say anything about the plan, Teo & Lippti appear and inform him that they feel the presence of someone with the same power as him, wielding the Black Chronicle, who's causing disarray in history. They reveal he killed the merchant in the other History, so Stocke needs to go there in order to balance both timelines. Breaking Rocks After coming back from the other timeline and saving the bombs merchant, Stocke decides to send scouts to look for him in this history. Kiel leads the searching squad, and shortly after they come back with the explosives, blowing up the entrance to the cave. Before they go inside, Rosch briefs his Brigade on their mission one more time. They are supposed to find and eliminate the Granorg forces advancing through the mine, but he explains that they shouldn't expect too many of them knowing that the mine is not in top condition. After a small prep talk, Rosch and Stocke lead the Brigade into the cave, reminding them to watch out for Goblins inside. Duel in the Dark Once they get inside, the cave starts to shake, and Raynie gets unusually uncomfortable. She notices that there's nothing but Goblins and doubts if Granorg forces are really there, stating that she was expecting a huge battle after joining the army. Suddenly the cave shakes again, blocking the way back and separating them from the rest of the Brigade. Rosch orders them to go back to the entrance and get some explosives so they can regroup later, and the team decides to keep searching for the enemy. Raynie freaks out again, saying that "this time" she would die for sure. Kiel explains that there's only one way through the cave and it leads to the exit, where they expect to encounter the enemy. Rosch tells him that during the fight he should stay in the rear providing support, as he's not ready for a real battle yet, but Kiel assures him he's ready and he'll do his best. Finally they reach the end of the cave, finding the Granorgites along with some explosives, which probably caused the cave-in, and Stocke contemplates using the explosives to their advantage. Rosch throws his spear at the barrels, while Stocke, Raynie and Marco deal with the remaining soldiers from the flank. Reinforcements from the Selvan Troop come inside the cave after hearing the commotion, so Rosch and Kiel join them in the fight. After a fierce battle, they defeat the enemy soldiers just as the rest of the Rosch Brigade arrive. The final part of their mission is to seal the Granorg end of the mine, but Rosch realizes this is a wasted opportunity to counterattack. Stocke recommends against this though, as the enemy would surely be watching out, so they decide to seal it up anyways, posting a guard there in case Granorg decides to use this route one more time. Rosch then informs his Brigade that, as the war is far from over, they will be going through an intense training once they head back to Alistel. Raynie and Marco stay behind to rest a bit, while Stocke goes ahead. They reflect on the outcome of the mission, and Marco notices Raynie's behavior from before, knowing that she doesn't like being in places like that. Back in Alistel, Marco and Raynie state that being in a second cave-in was not a particular good experience. They explain Stocke that their former mercenary troop was wiped out at a mine by a horde of monsters, and Raynie notes that one of the monsters went right into one of the supporting beams of the cave, as if it knew was it was doing. Marco thinks nothing of it, saying that the monster died in the cave-in too. Stocke just tells them to leave that in the past and move on. :Continue: Alternate History: Chapter 1 Standard History SI Assignment Stocke decides to continue working under Heiss. Rosch is notably disappointed, but he respects his friend's decision. Rosch leaves, and Stocke goes to see Heiss for his new assignment. Upon arriving, Heiss informs him that his next mission is to capture Vlad, a spy and leader of a rebel faction in Alistel who opposes the Prophet Noah. He tells Stocke to go to the Item Shop and meet one of his informants there, and find out anything he can about Vlad. When he gets there, the owner recognizes him for his red clothes as told by Heiss, and he tells Stocke that Vlad should appear soon at the bar. Stocke gets to the bar and takes a seat, and Vlad appears soon after. Stocke watches closely as the spy gets a package from the barkeep, and waits until Vlad leaves the bar to apprehend him outside. When he is stopped by Stocke he explains that there are many reasons not to believe blindly in your superiors, but Stocke doesn't care and draws his sword to shut him up, and a battle between the two begins. However, Stocke wins the battle without much effort, just as Raynie and Marco appear from the shadows to capture Vlad. They explain that they were called as backup in case anything wrong happened, but they are surprised to see Stocke in such good condition. Top Secret Mission After Vlad is done with, the trio goes to Heiss's office, who explains that the rebels were plotting to steal the army's supply of explosives, which were originally meant to be used at the Alma Mine. Heiss tells them he already has someone else taking care of that, and that he has a much more important mission for them, one which potentially could put an end to the long war. They are ordered to go to Granorg and wait for further instructions there, as the status of the war changes quickly. Heiss explains that the Sand Fortress is about to get captured by Granorg once more, so a border contact will be waiting for them at Lazvil Hills. Before they leave the city, Rosch comes to see Stocke and tries to make him understand that the mission he's going is too dangerous, but Stocke assures him he knows the risks and won't get killed. Rosch asks his friend once more time to join his Brigade, but Stocke replies that all he cares is doing his job for the sake of Alistel. Rosch insists, but suddenly Sonja appears and stops him, saying that he's projecting his worries onto Stocke. Stocke tries to leave but he's stopped by Rosch, and Stocke assures him that he's not going on a suicide mission. :Continue: Standard History: Chapter 1 Category:Chapters